Divorced Hermione

The rest of the week went really quickly for Hermione. She took her children to the zoo and to some museums. She wanted them as cultured as they could be in muggle artefacts before they were thrown into the magical world.

Malfoy had sent texts to Hermione every day since their date. Their banter was so simple, yet Hermione lived for the brief moments where she could take out her phone and text back and forth with him. They had tried to arrange a second date, but Hermione held off, wanting to spend time with her children. In some ways, it was sort of an excuse, because she as petrified of what she may do if he came to her house and they were alone. She thought about their date over and over again and fantasised about what it might have been like if she had invited him in. Each time, she had to remind herself that she did the logical thing. She used her brain and held back for a reason. If only she could remember what that reason was.

The following week was just the same as the previous.

Ron had asked to have the children for an entire week and Hermione reluctantly obliged. It would be months before they would see him again.

He had even gone as far as to ask if they could meet his girlfriend. She wasn’t sure if it was the fact that she had dated Malfoy and she was happy, or that she just didn’t care anymore, but she agreed for him to have Vivienne meet the children.

On the Friday, he came to collect the children and had Vivienne in the car. Hermione held her tongue and stayed silent, for the sake of the children. They didn’t need to see their mother murder someone.

As soon as Ron had left with the children, Hermione put on some music and tidied up a bit, before texting Ginny.  

H- We’re going out tonight.

G- If you insist. I’ll be over soon.

Hermione had a shower and by the time she was out, Ginny was standing in her kitchen.

The two talked while they both got ready for the night out. Hermione no longer doubted whether she wanted to pursue anything with Malfoy. She was going to take it as it came, allow whatever was meant to be, to be.

“You are putting your future in the hands of fate?” Ginny asked, as they put their shoes on at 8pm.

“Absolutely” she said.

“Why? You can just take control here. Tell him you want a relationship. Monogamy and all of that” Ginny said.

“Hmmm I’m not too sure what it is that I want from all this though. We’ve been out on one date” Hermione said.

“Two” Ginny corrected.

“A lunch and a date” Hermione said.

“Either way, he is all you have been talking about for the last week and a half. Its obvious that you want something to happen there. Just tell him” she said.

“It’s so complicated” Hermione said,

“No Hermione, its really not” she said, picking up her purse.

“Well, you need to sit then because its about to be” Hermione said, sitting on the lounge.

“Oh no” Ginny said.

“I accepted a job at Hogwarts” Hermione spat out.

“Oh Merlin I thought it was something insane like you and Ron were getting back together. So what? You’ll be working at the castle. That’s great” she said.

“No, its not. You think there will be times like this? Days where I can just leave the castle whenever I want to go on dates? Sleep overs will never happen. It will never work. Look at all the teachers who have ever worked there. All spinsters” Hermione said.

“Well, its about time you got in and shook things up. Its not the 90s anymore Hermione” she said.

“As if you would think I’d get back with Ron. Give me some credit” Hermione said as they linked arms to disapparate.

“You’re right. Although, you did crawl into his bed at 2am so… Not surprising” Ginny said with a smile that only Ginny could get away with.

Instantly, Hermione found herself outside the front of the club, still linked with Ginny, heading for the front doors.

“Come on in, the VIP area is all set for you ladies” said the security guard.

“Oh, thank you” said Ginny as they walked through the entrance and into the waiting club.

Hermione put fifty Galleons over the bar and asked that they have their bottle filled all night. The bar tender was happy to oblige.

“You’re feeling generous tonight” Ginny said.

“I’m in a good mood” she said.

“Let me guess, loverboy is on his way?” Ginny asked.

“I actually don’t know, as a matter of fact” she said.

Ginny said nothing but her face gave away her surprise. When the two arrived at the VIP section, Hermione dumped her purse, sat down and poured two drinks.

“Here’s to the future” Hermione said.

“Here’s to my first game back with the Harpies next weekend” Ginny said.

“Oh my Godric Gin, that’s right. Well, here’s to you” Hermione said, drinking half her drink at once.

“Slow down woman” Ginny said, casually sipping hers.

“See, this is where we differ a lot. You’re the life of the party, you can dance and sing and carry on regardless of alcohol. I on the other hand, I need liquor to get loose” Hermione said, before finishing her drink.

Hermione looked around the club hoping she would see Malfoy. If he wasn’t here, it would be the first time she had come and not seen him.

“He’ll be here” Ginny said.

“Who?” Hermione asked.

“Don’t be silly, I can see you pining for him” Ginny said.

Hermione just rolled her eyes and poured herself another glass.

The pair had another two drinks and loads of gossip before Ginny suggested they dance.

“Yes please, I think I’m tipsy enough for a dance” Hermione said,

The dance floor was pretty packed, as it was most Friday nights around this time. This was Hermione’s new favourite place to be and they were soon becoming regulars.

Hermione and Ginny took their spot right in the middle of the dance floor, under the coloured lights and danced for an entire song. Hermione felt so carefree and happy. She didn’t know if it was the fact that she wasn’t jobless anymore or the fact that she was feeling wanted for the first time in what felt like forever, or if she was just genuinely carefree in this moment, she was just feeling completely at ease with her life.

After a few songs had passed, the music slowed down and Hermione and Ginny were given a reprieve from the upbeat, high energy music that had been playing up until that point.  

“Let’s sit?” Hermione asked Ginny.

“Uh, I think he has other plans” Ginny said, indicating behind Hermione.

Hermione turned around and was pleased to see Malfoy standing behind her.

“I was beginning to think you weren’t coming” Hermione said to him as butterflies fluttered around in her stomach.

“I’ll go sit” Ginny said, wandering off towards the VIP seating.

“You said you were having a girl’s night” he said.

“That doesn’t mean you can’t come and say hi” she said, awkwardly standing with him on the dancefloor.

“Well now that I’m here, do you want to dance?” he asked.

“To this?” she asked.

“You don’t dance to slow songs?” he asked.

“Well, I don’t know, I might. I just don’t know if I’m any good at it” she said.

“Give it a go” he said, taking her hand and placing it on his shoulder.

Hermione stepped closer to him and once again was thrown by how bloodygood he smelled. He took her other hand in his and held it in his against his chest as they began to sway to the music.

“Is it strange to say I missed you?” he asked.

“No, I don’t think so” she answered, knowing that she had missed him too.

The two of them moved slowly with the music for a short while until the song changed.

“I need a drink” she said, keeping hold of his hand and leading him back to the lounges.

Hermione sat in the VIP section and picked up the bottle, pouring herself a drink. She looked at the table and saw that Ginny had left a note.

Hermione – sorry, had to leave. Something came up with the kids. Text me later. Have fun girl. -Gin

“Well, there goes girl’s night” Hermione said, sipping on her drink, feeling slightly disappointed.

“What happened?” he asked.

“Something with her children” Hermione said.

“Potter has kids?” he asked trying to make conversation.

“Yes, they have three” she said.

“Hmm, well, good on him” was all he said.

The pair sat for a while, neither of them speaking.

After a while, Hermione began feeling slightly awkward. She was at a loss at what to say. Before, they had had amazing banter, talking about anything and everything. One of them had always come up with something to talk about, but here, this night, Hermione could feel the awkwardness growing with every breath.

It was a strange feeling, because she had been on a lunch and dinner date and texted him for a week and a half, yet, here she sat, unable to come up with something to say.

“I suppose I’ll just go home then” she said finally.

“You don’t want to stay?” he asked. “With me?” he added.

Did she? Now that she was here in front of him, she felt really uneasy about the whole thing. She felt incredibly nervous and the butterflies in her stomach were making her feel queasy.

“This is so dumb, we’ve been texting for over a week, but I just feel strange” she said.

“You’re worried people will see us together?” he asked.

“Well, I wasn’t before but maybe I am now” she said.

They sat in silence, listening to the music for a while, no one saying anything.

After what felt like forever to Hermione, with her mind still no clearer on what she wanted to do, Malfoy stood.

“Well, text me when you figure all this out. I’m in, Granger. I want to be with you. You just need to figure out if you want the same” he said.

Hermione looked at him with no indication that she knew what to say.

“People will see us together. That’s a given. People will talk. Your ex will talk. Your kids will have something to say. I’m always going to be me and you’re always going to be you. What you need to decide is if you can get past all that and allow yourself to be happy, for perhaps the first time” he said, looking at her eagerly for a response.

“I…” she said, but stopped when she realised she had no idea what to say… still.

Malfoy simply turned and walked away, exiting the club via the front door, leaving Hermione alone.

She sat sipping her drink for a while wondering how she could make this better. She pulled out her phone and scrolled through the days of texts she and Malfoy had sent back and forth. His messages had all been sweet, chatting about his day, asking about hers. He had demonstrated over and over again how caring he was, how sincere he was and how much she could trust him. There were a hundred things that she could have spoken to him about just not, a million topics of conversation that she could have chosen to discuss, but for some incredibly stupid reason, she had drawn a blank.

She scrolled to Ginny’s name and typed a text to her, sipping her drink as she texted back and forth.

H- I’m an idiot

G- Why

H- He left

G- What did you do

H- Told him I was unsure.

G- Why would you do that? You like him.

H- I know but as soon as we sat down, things got weird

G- how?

H- The conversation went nowhere. It just felt awkward and forced.

G- because you’ve done loads of talking, you need action.

H- Ginny!

G- I’m joking, sort of. How’s your stomach?

H- My stomach? Why?

G- Does it feel like its flipped upside down?

H- Yes! Only 100 times.

G- You need to get him back

H- He left, through the front door

G- text him.

H- and say what? Sorry I told you I was unsure about us, lets shag<

G- exactly that

H- no way

G- just invite him over and talk then

H- You think?

G- YES

H- righto don’t shout

G- don’t let him get away Hermione, he seems like he’s really changed and he is into you. Sorry, but you’re a 36-year-old single mum. You’re into him, he’s into you. This is not going to come around that often.

H- But am I ready?

G- You’re ready for a thorough shagging, so get going

H- I’ll text you later.

Hermione rolled her eyes at her friends last text and got up from where she sat, heading for the front doors. She left the building and looked up and down the street, hoping Malfoy would be outside. He was no where to be seen. She pulled out her phone and sent a text.

H- I’m sorry, I’m an idiot. I’m going home. If you aren’t completely put off, I’ll be waiting up for you to come over. I think we should talk.

She hit send, then with a focus on her living room, she turned on the spot in the middle of the abandoned muggle street.

Arriving in her lounge room, she kicked off her shoes and sat down. She hoped she would hear from him soon, but she wasn’t going to hold her breath. She had been a right bitch to him. He had given her every reason to feel that he had changed and no reason not to trust him. She was a fool not to follow her heart.

When several minutes had gone by with no reply from Malfoy, she headed upstairs and changed into her pyjamas.

She was part way through chastising herself further for being stupid, when the doorbell rang. She looked herself up and down in the mirror, shaking her head at how ridiculous she looked in her pjs and fluffy slippers before heading down to answer the door.

When she opened the door, Malfoy was standing just outside looking sullen.

“Please come in” she said.

He followed her inside, through the living areas into the kitchen. She poured them both a glass of wine and led him back through to the living room.

“Granger, I…” he began.

“No, please let me…” she said. He nodded indicating for her to go.

“You’re completely right. I am freaked out about every little thing to do with whatever is happening here. As soon as we sat down and the conversation went dead, I panicked. My head is so messed up, I know what I want, but logically, my mind is telling me that I ought to just forget about it. I am petrified that we’ll be the topic of conversation for everyone, everywhere. I panic about what my children will think. If they reject you, I’ll have no choice but to do that same. They’re my whole life. This is not going to be easy” she said.

“You just…” he began.

“Please… let me finish. I have had the most amazing two weeks, getting to know you and talking to you. I feel like I have landed in this strange new world where I am actually getting what I want. And its scary. My head tells me its foreign, but when you’re near me, my stomach does these weird little flip things. I have no idea what that means but I would really like the opportunity to find out” she said.

There was silence, followed by a smile that graced his handsome face.

“So… You want to do this then?” she asked.

“Do what?” he asked.

“Be a couple. Make it official. See where it takes us” she said.

He moved from the armchair to the 3-seater couch where she sat, and sat right beside her.

“Yes” he said confidently, leaning in and kissing her.

He kissed her just as tenderly as she remembered from before. It was soft and careful and made her feel wanted. Carefully, she pushed it further, deepening the kiss, pulling him closer to her, and her to him. The tingling sensation had returned and, combined with the butterflies that had not left her stomach since she saw him, she was feeling incredibly desperate for something more and knew that she could pursue it right now if she wanted.

Hermione allowed her senses to take over and gave in completely to her instinctual urges. She needed this, whatever this was. It felt so good to have his hands on her body. He had a hand in her hair, he cupped her face, he carefully traced his fingers down her arms and back up again. Hermione was all sensation and it was incredible. She hadn’t felt this way in more years than she could remember.

As she continued to kiss him, she allowed her logical brain to consider whether or not to drag him to her bedroom. Her body was screaming yes, her mind was screaming yes, everything about this moment screamed yes, but Hermione, being as she was, had to consider it first.

With her hands grasping his biceps and feeling the muscular ridges on his shoulders, she simply couldn’t come up with a reason not to take this moment further. Before she could talk herself out of it, and before her bravery went away, she grabbed her wand from the side table and casually flicked off the lights. After setting her wand back down, she took the hem of his shirt and pulled it off over his head.  Underneath, he was gloriously muscular and toned, with a light spattering of hair across the centre of his chest that extended down into his pants line. His body was unlike Ron’s in so many ways. Ron had always been a little on the chubby side and his body was covered in curly ginger hair. Malfoy could have been an underwear model, but in a subtle way that was incredibly sexy.

Hermione placed her hands flat against his chest and pushed so he was now laying sideways on the lounge. Her body followed his and she placed her knees either side of his thighs, leaning forward so she could continue kissing him.

She hadn’t been this close to a man, other than Ron, ever, and although she felt sort of lost, foreign and completely out of her depth, she wanted him right now more than she wanted anything.

She supported her weight with her thighs as she used both hands to undo Malfoy’s pants. As she did, he lifted her pyjama shirt and ran his hands over the smooth skin of her back. When she had undone his belt, button and fly, she sat up as Malfoy removed her pyjama shirt completely. Taking the opportunity, she stood briefly and slid her pants down her legs, now leaving her completely naked. She was grateful for the darkness, as she hadn’t been seen this vulnerable by anyone other than Ron. This would take some getting used to but as Malfoy slid down his pants and underwear, she quietly assured herself that getting used to this would she something she could do over and over again.

She positioned one knee beside him on the lounge and eagerly resumed her position. She could feel his erection pressing against her and she knew, at this point, she would just have to move slightly and she would have the feeling she had been craving so badly lately. His hands held her breasts and he thumbed her nipple as she moaned with sensation.

Her heart was racing as she ground her soaking wetness against him and she kissed him as his hands moved to her backside, gripping her tightly. He groaned as she moved and she took this as a sign that it was time to push it further. She raised her body up, apparently a lot, and for a moment hesitated ever so briefly as she realised he was much bigger than Ron. She felt the tip of his erection reach her entrance and so slowly, she lowered herself back down, moaning in ecstasy as his warm throbbing cock filled her completely. Not only was he much larger in length, but in width he was bigger as well. She hadn’t realised that size could be such a game changer as she felt her muscles begin to clench around him already and she hadn’t even began to move yet.

“Merlin Granger you’re so damn sexy” he hissed thorough his clenched teeth. He was clearly enjoying this as much as she was. As she began to move she tilted her head back, completely overcome by sensation. When his mouth found her nipple, his hot breath almost made her come undone.

She had barely had a minute to take the lead when he lifted her body, standing, while never breaking the sweet contact.

“Bedroom?” he asked.

She simply pointed to the stairs and indicated upwards. He walked clumsily, still holding onto her beneath her backside with one arm and around her back with the other. She gripped his shoulders and moaned, as the unfamiliar motion of them moving in this way touched her in places she didn’t know existed.

Before they made it up the stairs, he pushed her into the wall on the bottom landing and thrusted into her, causing her to call out.

“Oh my god” she cried as he held her against the wall, kissing her neck. “I’m not going to make it to the bedroom if you keep doing that” she said, breathless, as he held one breast him his hands and gently flicked her nipple with his tongue.

“That’s ok, I’m gonna make you cum right here then I’ll do it again on the bed” he whispered in her ear.

Just the feeling of his warm breath on her ear and his words were enough to cause Hermione’s body to convulse. He reached between them with his hand and pressed his thumb against her clit, triggering her to cry out in an orgasm that would have made her fall to the floor if she had been standing on her feet.

Once she caught her breath, he regained his grip on her and carried her up the stairs into her room, which she directed him to. Breaking contact for the first time, he placed her on the bed and climbed up slowly. Hermione was still reeling from the orgasm when she felt his breath on her sensitive area. He held her legs in the air as his mouth found the mark and he began a sweet torture that resulted in a second orgasm within minutes.

If she didn’t think she could go on, she was wrong as he made his way up her body, holding her tightly and slamming into her. Hermione loved it rough, and after the two mind blowing orgasms she had, she wasn’t expecting a third. She was just pleased to be experiencing all this sensation. It wasn’t long at all before she felt him quicken, and as he did, she felt her own body respond and before long, the two of them came undone together, collapsing side by side on Hermione’s king size, four poster bed.

Hermione smiled to herself in her post orgasmic bliss for what could have been seconds, hours or minutes, she wasn’t sure. She hadn’t had an experience like that ever.

“I have a confession to make” he said, causing Hermione’s smile to falter.

“What is it?” she asked in as serious a tne as she could muster.

“I’m actually pretty good at that” he said, smiling as he pulled her close to him.

“Oh my god, Malfoy…” she said. “Yes, you are, you’re absolutely right. Thanks for warning me” she said.

“I would have done if you hadn’t been so forceful and given me a chance to think” he said.

“Think? Then you might have run away” she said, nuzzling into the crook of his arm. She had always found this to be something that only happens in the movies, a post sex snuggle and banter. It certainly never happened with Ron, he was the type of man who wanted to get his rocks off and roll over and go to sleep. Hermione never really thought that any other way happened beyond the movies. But this was nice. The place on his body, between his shoulder and his chest was perfect for her head to rest on, and his hand lazily trailed lines up and down her bare back.

“Run away?” he said. “And miss out on that? I don’t think so” he said.

“So that was good for you then?” she asked, her serious tone forcing its way back into the conversation.

She felt his chin dip and she looked up into his face to see him looking down at her.

“That was mind blowing. Are you kidding? That was as good as I can imagine that it can get, for our first time together” he said.

“When was the last time… for you?” she asked him.

“It was with my wife. I just… I haven’t been able to… since then. Till you” he said,

“I feel honoured” she said, tracing circles on his chest.

Before long, Hermione found herself drifting off into sleep, completely sated and with a smile on her face. Her body was spent, and her mind was at ease. Her dreams that night were of all the potential futures she could see for herself. All of which included Malfoy in some way. She had not anticipated he could make her feel this way after such a short time, Merlin, they were only an official couple for mere minutes before she had him in her bed.  But as she slept, her mind was continually reassuring her that it was just so right.

For the first time in more than a year and a half, she was happy.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hermione woke on Saturday morning in her bed and sat upright immediately when she realised where she was.

She hadn’t really remembered falling asleep, but she knew she wasn’t alone when she had. Waking up by herself now, made her feel slightly uneasy. She began to question everything that happened the night before and thought that maybe Malfoy had left her.

She got up, feeling sore in all her joints and smiled to herself at the memory of the night before. She threw some clothes over her naked body and headed downstairs to make a cup of tea before intending on taking a shower. She arrived on the bottom floor of the house and immediately realised she wasn’t alone. The smell of bacon wafted through the house and she could hear cooking going on in the kitchen.

She entered the kitchen to find Malfoy, freshly showered and dressed, cooking breakfast.

“You didn’t wake me” she said, peering into a pan of eggs.

He turned around and the smile on his face was one to rival that of the Cheshire cat.

“You looked pretty peaceful” he said.

“This looks great” she said.

“I hope you don’t mind” he said.

“Are you kidding? This is incredible. Just be careful or you might not be allowed to go home” she said.

“Well, that’s a tough one, because I have a meeting this afternoon” he said.

“Hmm, perks of being the best of the best, hey?” she said.

“Something like that. Can’t say much for yourself, lady of leisure” he said, putting his arm around her and pulling her into his side,

“Well, you know” she said, shrugging.

 She stood at the breakfast bar, the same place he had stood almost 2 weeks ago, and watched him move around her kitchen, expertly. She placed the plates on the counter and retrieved the knives and forks from the drawer, setting the table. She made a pot of tea and set it on the table as well as all the other essentials, as Malfoy plated up breakfast.

She sat down at her usual spot at the table and watched as he hesitated at taking a seat.

“Where should I sit?” he asked.

“What do you mean? Just sit anywhere", she said.

“I don’t want to sit in anyone’s spot” he said, sitting across from Hermione.

“Well, we don’t really have assigned seating, not anymore. And besides, its just us, you can sit where you like” she said, placing a forkful of breakfast into her mouth. “This is incredible. Where did you learn to cook the muggle way?” she asked.

“Oh, you know, just a little thing I picked up on my travels” he said, smiling.

“Do you have any other talents I need to know about?” she asked.

“Well, except the bedroom stuff, I think you’re all up to speed” he said, grinning like a schoolboy, placing bacon on his fork.

“I don’t think last night could be explained. Definitely had to be experienced to be believed” she said, blushing slightly.

“Are you blushing?” he asked, still smiling like a fool.

“What? No way” she said, blushing even more.

They continued their banter throughout breakfast and for a while afterwards. It felt nice to sit and have a real conversation with someone. Ginny was her best friend and she was amazing, but to talk to someone new, go over things that have happened in their lives and experience it all for the first time made Hermione happy.

When they had finished, Malfoy stood to collect their plates.

“No way, I’m taking care of those” she said, taking the plates from his hands.

“If you insist” he said, putting his hands in the air in a sign of defeat.

She rinsed the plates and began washing them, feeling his eyes on her the whole time. He didn’t speak, but he knew he was itching to say something.

When she was almost done, he came and stood directly behind her, wrapping his arms round her body and caressing her stomach underneath her shirt. As she washed the forks they ate with, one hand travelled upwards, cupping her breast, while the other travelled south and beyond the elastic of her pyjama pants.

She was panting, aching for his touch once again.

She continued her attempt to do the dishes while he kissed her neck, which proved to be difficult. His fingers were partaking in a sweet assault on her already sensitive clit and his other hand was kneading her breast in a way that made her knees weak.

After finally having enough of the torture, she turned around and leant against the edge of the bench. She stood up on her toes and angled her head to kiss him. She was now fully aware that if he didn’t lean down as she leant up, she couldn’t actually reach to kiss him.

He responded by kissing her, as he took the waist band of her pants, tugging them down, leaving her naked from the waist down. He gripped her underneath her backside and lifted her onto the edge of the sink, parting her legs as he did.

“I’ve been standing over there, thinking about doing this to you the whole time you’ve been at that sink” he said, gripping his erection in one hand and easing it into her. She moaned as he did, and she threw her head back with pleasure as she wrapped her legs around his body. He held onto her and began to move, thrusting into her. She was worked up from his fingers and it didn’t take long before the rubbing of his body against her clit began to send her into a frenzy.

She looked into the face of the man who had made her moan and caused her incredible pleasure and she realised that she no longer saw him as the teenage boy who caused her so much grief. He was now the man who had flirted with her, bantered with her, kissed her and now known her intimately. He was the perfect man.

At this realisation and as she looked into his eyes, the warmth that she was feeling from her building orgasm, burst within her, spreading out around her body, making her cry out in pleasure. She screwed her eyes shut and saw stars as she came around him again and again, not noticing him do the same.

When she opened her eyes, Malfoy’s forehead was pressed against hers and she smiled.

“Well… that was fantastic” she said, kissing him gently on the mouth as he withdrew himself from her.

“That’s one word for it” he said, smiling, as he picked her pants up from the floor as she hopped down from the sink edge.

“Thanks” she said, putting her feet into the legs of her pants. “Well, I need a shower” she said, wondering why she just put her pants back on, if she was about to take them off again.

“Take your time, I need to go home and get ready for this meeting later today” he said, kissing her again. “Mmm, I doubt whether I’ll ever get enough of doing that” he said, inches away from her face as he lent forward and kissed her again.

Hermione glanced at the clock and realised that the breakfast she thought she just had, was in fact lunch. It was now 1pm.

“What time is your meeting?” she asked, wondering if he would be back later on.

“Its at 2” he said.

“Oh, so you really need to go then” she said.

He simply nodded as he took her face in his hands and kissed her again.

“I’ll text you” he said, stepping away.

“You better” she responded, feeling a little sad that he was leaving.

She followed him to the front door and hesitated before opening it for him. She wondered if it was too soon to add his DNA to the wards she had built around her house, allowing him to come and go, using disapparation, as he pleased. She decided against this immediately, as it wouldn’t be appropriate if he just appeared when the children were home. Although, it would allow him to apparate directly into her bedroom. She quickly shook these thoughts from her mind as she opened the door for him to leave.

“Your eyebrows do this funny thing when you think too hard” he said.

“Oh” was all she said. She couldn’t imagine trying to explain how she was jut thinking of him apparating directly into her bed.

“I’ll see you later” he said, kissing her once again. She deepened the kiss, teasing his lips with her tongue. His tongue flicked hers in return, and in the seconds before Hermione was about to drag him back inside, he pulled away.

“I’ll definitely see you later” he said, stepping backwards out of the doorway and onto the veranda.

“I’ll text you” she said, watching him walk down the front path and onto the street. She wondered where he would go to disapparate, but as she turned to shut the door, she heard a crack and knew he was gone.

‘I hope he looked around first’ she thought to herself, wondering if anybody might have seen him just disappear into thin air. Afterall, she lived in a muggle community where she knew people.

She wandered back into the kitchen and finished the dishes before having a shower.

She dressed and then found her phone, which had a flat battery. When she plugged it in, it lit up with notification after notification.

GINNY- So

G- What’s happening

G- Hermione

G- Come on, what’s happening

ROSE- Mum, dad’s girlfriend is so nice. She bought us ice cream and took us to the movies.

DRACO- I miss you already

G- Let me know when you’re free. I’m coming over

Hermione scrolled through the messages, smiling at the one from Malfoy. He must have sent it just as he left. She wondered if it was too soon to be feeling this way, but she couldn’t help but feel giddy and silly at the thought of him.

H-G- Come over for tea. Lots to tell.

H-D- I miss you too. Enjoy your meeting. I’m having dinner with Ginny.

H-R- Hope you’re both having a good time. What did you see?

R- It was some stupid movie. Really boring. Not for kids.

H-R- Oh well, at least dads trying.

R- Trying to suck face with his girlfriend. Its gross.

Hermione cringed inwardly at this. If her children were having to sit around watching Ron and Vivienne make out all day, then she would not be allowing this to go on. She scrolled down to Ron’s name in her phone and pressed ‘call’.

“Hello?”

“Ron, its me”

“Yeah I know, I have caller ID”

“So, Rose has been texting me and the kids really don’t need to be seeing you making out with your girlfriend all the time” she said.

“What the hell Hermione?”

“What?”

“Are you jealous or something? You’re all alone, so you use the kids to make up bullshit like this?” he said, anger radiating through the phone. Hermione was perplexed. 

“Ron, I’m just telling you what Rose has told me. They don’t like it so you need to cut it out” she said.

“Jeez, Hermione, I thought you were better than this” he said.

“Better than what Ron? I’m looking out for our kids’ best interests, while you are looking out for your own. Now stop shoving our divorce in their faces, stop slobbering all over your girlfriend’s face and pay attention to your kids” she said, hanging up the phone.

Hermione was furious at this. She scrolled to Ginny in her texts and sent her a quick message.

G- Come over now. I need to vent before I apparate to your brother’s house and kill him.

Within minutes, Ginny was standing in her loungeroom, looking as mad as Hermione.

“What’s he done now?” Ginny asked.

“Look at this” Hermione said, showing her the texts from Rose.

“Sucking face? Gross” she said.

“I don’t have a problem with him having a girlfriend. To be honest, id rather it not be the woman who broke up our marriage but that’s a whole other issue. But does he really need to flaunt it in front of the kids?” Hermione ranted.

“Its Ron. He’s probably doing it so that they’ll tell you about it and you’ll be jealous” Ginny said.

“Well, I have absolutely zero reason to be jealous” she said.

“Not even a little? I mean, you did crawl into his bed a few weeks ago” Ginny said.

“Ginny, do you realise, that was over a month ago now? So much has happened since then. Besides, if anyone has reason to be jealous, its Ron” she said, smiling.

“What do you mean?” Ginny asked. “What happened last night?”

“How would you put it…? I got a thorough shagging” she said, still smiling like an idiot.

“Wait, go back. Last I knew... And this was just last night, you bailed on him and then were going to invite him over to talk. Are you telling me, you… Miss Hermione Granger, shagged Draco Malfoy last night?” Ginny asked.

“And this morning” she said.

Ginny stared at her in disbelief, as Hermione told her what had happened.

“… and then when I turned my phone on, he had messaged me, literally, just after he had left and told me he missed me” she finished, about 20 minutes later.

“Oh… My… God…” Was all Ginny could say.

“That’s what I was saying” she said.

“You little minx. I didn’t think you had it in you” she said.

“Neither did I to be honest. Ron was always so boring, and I’ve only ever been with him. This was a whole different experience” Hermione said.

“I don’t want to know how my brother is in bed, but it’s good to see you happy” she said.

“Thanks Gin. I am, I am actually really happy” she said.

“So where are we going for dinner?” Ginny asked.

The rest of the night flew by quickly, with the two women rehashing the last couple of months over dinner and cocktails at one of their favourite restaurants. Hermione hadn’t realised that it had been 2 months since she first went out. Two months since she first danced, carefree at Neville’s club with Malfoy.

At 11pm, the two women headed for the exit of the restaurant, feeling happy and tipsy.

“Now don’t forget, next weekend is my first game back with the Harpies, so it will be huge. Everyone’s going to be there. Mum’s having all the kids, yours too if you like” she said.

“I think they’ll like that. How many cousins will be there?” Hermione asked, wondering how the Burrow would contain that many children.

“There’s 12 now” Ginny said, rolling her eyes. “George is still going though, so who knows how many there will end up being” she said.

“Your mum is a brave woman” Hermione said.

“Well, Victoire is 16 now and Teddy will be there to help… Oh, did I tell you? They’re dating!” Ginny said, as they walked down the stone pathway to a place where they could apparate home.

“Teddy and Vic? No” Hermione said, shocked.

“Yep” Ginny said, nodding her head, as they approached an ally.

--

Hermione laid in her bed that night, with her phone beside her head.

She was yet to hear from Malfoy, and she was concerned. Despite the strongest logical part of her brain screaming at her that she needed to give it some time, she wanted to be around him now, more than ever. Even if he just laid with her and watched this predictable movie she had put on. She had become obsessed. Although, she knew he led a busy life and had meetings and partners and all kinds of things to do yet, she was hoping that she might see him again soon.

She was hardly paying attention to the movie she had put on an hour ago. She’d seen it before, so she wasn’t missing much. Some girl wanted a no strings attached relationship with some guy and low and behold, they fall in love. She thought about the concept of love and wondered if that’s what was happening to her. Was she falling in love? There was certainly a hell of a lot of lust between them, but love? If she thought about it, she couldn’t really pinpoint a time where she realised she had fallen in love with Ron all those years ago, she just sort of grew more fond of him over time. Was that love? Fondness? Or was there more? She certainly felt butterflies in her stomach when Malfoy was around, but she barely knew him. What could be considered a reasonable timeframe to go from enemies to strangers to acquaintances to love? The couple in the movie had to be apart before they realised they were in love. They had to suffer before they could be happy. Was Hermione on the pathway towards suffering?  And if she was, could she avoid it now that she knew it was possible? Or, had she already suffered at the hands of Ron’s infidelity and now was her time to be happy? All of these things ran through her mind while as she stared blankly at the screen.

She fell asleep before the movie had finished and woke up at 2am with the TV displaying a blue screen. She reached for the remote and glanced quickly at her phone. There was a message from Malfoy, sent at 1230am.

D- My meeting ran late and there was a lot to do afterwards. I really wanted to come and see you, but you’re probably asleep. Goodnight x

She read the message again and was relieved to see that he hadn’t abandoned her. Of course he was busy with work. ‘On a Saturday’ she thought.

She switched the TV off and typed a message back.

H-D- Hey stranger, nice to hear from you. Fell asleep watching a movie and thinking about you. Will text you in the morning.

She hit send, before placing her phone on the bedside table and closing her eyes.

She dreamt that she was in an airport and there were people coming and going in every direction. She stood in the middle, looking around at the faces of those who were rushing about their lives. The faces were blank and all looked the same. She stood up on her toes so she could look for a sign of someone she might know. There was no one. She turned to move in a direction, any direction, but as she tried to walk, she went nowhere, as though she was going the wrong way on a travellator. She wasn’t getting anywhere. She was about to start to panic, when she saw a familiar face walk towards her – it was Malfoy. She reached for him and he took her hand, pulling her towards him. As he did, the crowd began to disappear, and she could move. She was heading for the exit of the airport but when she got to the doors, there stood the Hogwarts Express, releasing steam out in all directions and blowing its horn.

She woke with a start and looked at the clock. It was 7am and Hermione decided that she ought to get up and make a start on the day ahead. She thought about the dream while she ate breakfast and couldn’t make sense of it. She decided to put it to the back of her mind, and while sitting on her back deck in the sun drinking coffee, she had forgotten all about it.

She busied herself with house work for the day, cleaning out old boxes of things she had forgotten all about. It was lunch time before she looked at her phone and saw that Malfoy hadn’t text her yet. She sat on the lounge with a sandwich and a coffee and typed a text to him.

H-D- Happy Sunday, hope you’re out enjoying the sunshine.

She didn’t expect a reply so soon, however her phone buzzed immediately.

D- Its lunch time, don’t tell me you’ve been asleep all day?

H- No way I’ve been up since 7, getting things done.

D- Me too. Been waiting for a beautiful woman to distract me from this paperwork.

Hermione scrolled up and read the text she sent him last night and it was then that she realised she had screwed up. She told him she’d text him in the morning.

H- I was supposed to text you when I woke. Sorry.

D- That’s ok. I’ve been distracted too.

H- Is everything ok?

D- Yeah just work. All boring things really.

H- Anything I can help with?

D- You help just by existing

Hermione’s heart skipped a beat at this.

H- That’s incredibly sweet.

D- Well, actually, you’re probably the reason it’s taking me so long to get this done. I haven’t stopped thinking about you since I left your house yesterday.

H- Me too.

D- I’m glad.

H- I want to see you.

D- I need a break from this anyway. Give me 5 minutes.

H- Ok.

Hermione jumped up and quickly ran to the bathroom, brushing her teeth and running her fingers through her hair. She applied some mascara and quickly changed her clothes.

By the time she got back downstairs, the doorbell rang, and she opened the door to see Malfoy standing there, looking better than ever. Her heart sped up when she saw him and she grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him towards her, into the house, kissing him roughly.

He responded by grabbing her backside with one hand and pressing her against the door frame. Deeping the kiss, Hermione slammed the front door and pulled Malfoy’s shirt off over his head.

She hadn’t intended on it, but somehow, half an hour later, Hermione and Malfoy were laying on her bed, catching their breath after some mind-blowing fun.

“Hi” she said.

“Hey” he said, smiling.

“How’s your day?” she asked.

“It just got a lot better” he said

“Mine too” she said.

Eventually, they got up and made their way to the kitchen, where Hermione handed him a bottle of butterbeer.

They sat at the kitchen bench and chatted about their day. Hermione hardly felt that her day was worth talking about but somehow, Malfoy seemed interested in knowing about the boring things she had done.

He told her about his meeting and Hermione finally understood why he was so snowed under. He was facing some backlash regarding some muggle born witches and wizards in the US and they wanted him to return there and deal with it. He refused, and now he had to attempt to communicate with his US colleagues to make it right.

Hermione wondered if he was staying just for her benefit, in which case she would feel both extremely guilty and flattered at the same time.

There was something nagging at the back of her mind the whole time he was there and that was her children. They were due back within the hour, and she had no idea what to do. She wanted him to stay, to meet them and for them to know him and like him as much as she did, but at the same time she knew better of it. She knew that she needed to keep these two lives of hers separate, at least for a little while.

“So there’s something that I think we need to talk about” she said.

“The elephant in the room?” he asked.

“Something like that” she said.

“Please, enlighten me” he said.

“This is serious. I am really struggling to think about how to deal with this…. issue” she said.

“So, tell me. I can help you” he said.

“My kids are due back… Within the hour” she said.

“Oh” he said.

“Oh indeed” she responded.

“Where do you find yourself sitting with that?” he asked.

“Well, I’d love for you to meet them… someday” she said.

“But not now?” he asked.

“Not now” she said.

“I get it” he said.

“Its not about you. At all. I just want to keep my two lives separate, for now” she said.

“So… till you’re comfortable, I’ll just come around when they’re at Weasleys and then when they’re at school, we’ll have the place to ourselves. Simple. Next problem?” he said.

“Well, that’s the thing. I have been offered a position at Hogwarts” she said, blurting out the one thing she had been fearing to say since they first went on a date. “Muggle studies” she added. He didn’t say anything, just opened his mouth and closed it again. “And I accepted... I start in a few weeks” she said, confirming what he appeared to be wondering.

“That’s good. You’re going to be working at the school, I’m happy for you” he said.

“So… that means…” she began.

“No house to ourselves” he said.

“No anywhere to ourselves” she said. “I just don’t know where to take things from there” she said, saying the thing that she had been worrying about all this time. “How can we legitimately make something work, when I won’t be here?” she asked.

He seemed to think about this for several moments, she guessed he was looking for the positives that she was yet to see.

“So, I guess you should go back to the US sooner, rather than later, before things go too far” she added, sadly.

“Too far? What is that supposed to mean?” he asked.

“Well, before either of us start having serious feelings” she said.

As soon as the words came out of her mouth, she regretted them. This was not a conversation she was ready to have.

“I… You’re right. I suppose we better call it quits now. Its not like there’s weekends or afternoons or night times or places we can meet. The room of requirement, the teacher’s quarters and days off… none of those things exist either” he said, smirking.

She was glad he didn’t mention the ‘feelings’ thing she said, but she sensed he wanted to.

“I think you should just stop worrying about what might happen and think about what is happening, now” he said, leaning forward and kissing her.

“So you really think we could make this work then?” she asked him.

“I think we can, yes” he said, leaning forward and kissing her.

Not too long afterwards, Hermione had bid Malfoy farewell, and watched him walk down the street. She hoped he was right, and they could make things work somehow. She wanted so badly to do right by McGonagall, but she felt that she owed it to herself to let herself be happy. The more she thought about it, the more she realised he was right. They would have weekends and afternoons and night times and all kinds of places they could sneak off to. In fact, the idea of sneaking around made it all the more exciting for Hermione.

Shortly after Malfoy left, the children were dropped off by Ron and for the rest of the night, Hermione chatted with them about their week, not asking too much but allowing them to lead the conversation anywhere they desired. They hadn’t offered too much about Vivienne, but Hermione sensed they liked her. She supposed that if they liked her, at least even a little, then she would keep her thoughts to herself.